A sweet little read-aloud board book for the littlest of “readers”.

The book is written from the first person perspective of a parent/guardian. There is no story as such. Rather, the whole narrative is about a range of animals that the child might wish to be, and how the narrator agrees to participate as well, no matter which animal the child chooses.

The concept builds up on children’s favourite games of dress-up and make-believe, and takes them to a whole new level by showing how much more fun the games are when adults willingly join in. The book also helps reinforce the good old days of fun where families played together without any distracting screens.

The animals covered are quite varied, ranging from hippos to kangaroos to snakes to whales and many more. Every single page has one to two animals. It’s fun to see the antics of the animals replicated by the humans on that page.

As this is a board book meant for the youngest readers – the 0-3 years segment, the most important factor for me is the fluidity of the lines while reading them aloud. When a book is written in rhythmic verse, I always read it out to see how comfortable it is to narrate aloud without stumbling or fumbling. This book gets the rhymes spot on! Every verse matches in meter, and the ABCB pattern never feels forced in. The whole book thus can be read in perfect flow.

The second important thing is of course the illustrations, and as that gorgeous cover indicates, the sketches are adorable. The animals as well as the humans are wonderfully drawn, and the vibrant colours will surely be striking in the physical copy. The illustrations are also pretty inclusive, with families of varied shapes and racial backgrounds being included.

In short, this debut work takes a simplistic premise and makes it impactful through the writing pattern, the illustrations, and the lovely thought behind the content.

Definitely a lovely book to add to your little one’s bedtime reading library. It would also make for a nice baby shower gift.

4.25 stars.

My thanks to Orca Book Publishers and NetGalley for the DRC of “I'll Be a Chicken Too”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Playful, heartwarming, and fun. This adorable story features perfect rhymes and a story about togetherness. Each page features a caregiver joining a child in pretending to be a different animal. The illustrations are so fun and will engage little readers. The art also features fantastic representation with a wide variety of families. This book was a joy to read and could certainly become a favorite read aloud (and inspiration for playtime too!)

This board book has super cute illustrations and a nice cadence, showing different parents and children pretending to be animals together. The main focus is on each parent's love for their child, and how they will meet their child where they are and play with them. This is really cute, and will be perfect for little ones who are interested in animal noises and activities.

Super cute!

I love the simplicity of the story, and the cadence/rhyme of the words throughout. It was fun and engaging and definitely a book that a parent can read with their child, showing that they will be whatever the kid needs them to be in order to fully support. Plus, who doesn't like pretending to be animals?

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

I loved this book so much. It is fun and interactive. I can see becoming snails and trying to be whales. Perfect baby shower gift as well.

This cute rhyming book brings to mind "The Runaway Bunny" by Margaret Wise Brown by celebrating the unconditional love between caregivers and children. The book opens with a bedtime scene and the words of "If you're a baby chicken, then I'll be a chicken too". Successive pages show caregivers of different skin tones and ages adapt to animal behavior along their children.

The watercolor illustrations are sweet, and I particularly loved the depiction of grandparents who are not often seen in books celebrating caregivers. The message of unconditional love is clear, though not overbearing. This would be a great addition to any library!

This sweet rhyming book is a celebration of love manifested in playtime between a parent, caregiver, grandparent and their wee one. The loving adults morph into chickens, frogs, dogs, whales and many more animals along side their child whose imagination is ignited in pretend playtime.

This board book displays unconditional love in a fun and rollicking way. Each animal has specific characteristics that both child and parent emulate together creating a bond between the two. The parent commits to the young child saying that no matter what animal they are, they will always be their precious child no matter what.

The excellent illustrations are full of humour and fun. The important message of acceptance and love will resonate in a young child's heart long after the story has been read again and again. I really love the cover. It's excellent! I highly recommend "I'll Be a ChickenToo".

I'll Be a Chicken Too is an adorable young children's board book. It expresses the important message of inclusivity and acceptance. My kids loved the cute animal rhymes. The illustrations were excellent. This would be the perfect gift for a baby shower or new parents.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orca Book Publishers for allowing me to be an early reader. All opinions are my own.

5 Stars

What a clever book on a way to show a parents love in a unique and fun way! This book basically just goes thru examples of animals and that if your child was a camel for example then you would walk on four feet with 2 humps and show your love. Each animal having a detail described specifically to that animal. I really loved this book. The Illustrations of this book are beautiful and with a water color/comic feel.

I would recommend to parents with pre-school or toddler aged kids. This would also make a perfect baby shower gift for new parents.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orca Books for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

I will be posting my review to my Instagram page the.littlest.booknook and retail sites close or on publication.

This was super cute and the illustrations were adorable too.

This would be an excellent book too read for pre-K through 1st grade.

I think it’s a book that’s fun and would have children start that love of reading at an early age.

This is such a cute picture book. The parent of the young child says that no matter what animal they are, they will always be their parent, be it chicken, or hippo or otter or bat or monkey. They will always be their parents, grandparents, and caregivers, and they will always love them. Which, of course, is the message you want to have for your child, that no matter what, you love them.

And it helps that the pictures are so darn cute. This is formatted as a board book, so the child can hold on to its thick pages, and “read” the book themselves.

<em>Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.</em>